Greetings everyone! My name’s Ryan and I’m the latest installment at NISA. I work with Nao on PR & Marketing and I’m really excited to start posting on this blog with her. Today, I wanted to stop in for a bit and talk about our title, Z.H.P: Unlosing Ranger VS. Darkdeath Evilman, coming to PSP (UMD and PSN) on October 26th.

For those who haven’t heard about it yet, it is a dungeon “grindfest” game featuring randomly generated dungeons and items allowing for endless possibilities and loads of replay value. You star as the newly appointed “Unlosing Ranger” who has to defeat Darkdeath Evilman in order to save the mysterious “Super Baby.” I know it all sounds confusing as the premise for a game, but as the story quickly unfolds you’ll get introduced to some hilarious characters and some curiously familiar people – even politicians!?

Among the world of Dungeon Crawling RPGs or roguelikes, I think Z.H.P: Unlosing Ranger VS. Darkdeath Evilman really shines. Although, true to roguelikes, you are punished for dying mid-dungeon and may develop mental trauma against the mob that killed you, you still are able to maintain stats through the gaming system even after death. As you are told in the beginning of the game, ”dying is a part of the game,” and it’s not necessarily a bad thing. To be honest I did feel like I dropped my ice cream on the pavement when I lost everything after I died. However, the sweet to the sour of roguelikes is that you can pick up your console, take a deep breath, and jump right back into a dungeon again knowing you’ll have a better chance, as with Z.H.P you get to keep your improved stats (invested time) from your previous dungeon grind. If you do make it through the dungeon, you can actually access your house to store all your items from your crawl, and then pay out some money for living expenses to your wife!

The first time I really started to laugh when I was playing the game was the first time you have to stand off against Darkdeath Evilman and fact the battle was in 8-bit graphics. I really appreciated the retro feel for that and it took me back to the late 80’s when I was playing oldschool RPGs. I just sat there and laughed as I got owned by Darkdeath Evilman, watching my HP decrease. On a side-note, I’m still working on my character at the moment, but I’m told the battle graphics do change once you level up higher. As for the controls, they are pretty comfortable as moving around and attacking are fairly easy to get accustomed to, and the tutorials help with other facets such as throwing and using items. The pace of attacking mobs is fairly quick too, so some may appreciate this over the longer turn-based RPG’s we are all accustomed to playing.

With Z.H.P: Unlosing Ranger VS. Darkdeath Evilman, I believe although the niche for roguelikes and dungeon crawlers may be small compared to other genres, if you view the game industry as a whole, it really has its own appeal and potential to provide an exponential number of hours of varied gameplay to anyone who enjoys RPGs in general, and especially those who have followed NIS titles in the past. I mean, at one point my character had a fishing pole and a hatchet for weapons, a troll mask, and a cloud for legs. My wife saw me playing and was like, “dood, what is up with your character, hahaha!” To answer your question, no, my wife isn’t a Prinny, but luckily for you in Z.H.P you actually do have a Prinny wife! Score, dood! The items are often hilarious and make the game stand out from other titles to create a memorable experience. With endless customization, beyond-bizarre items, a unique battle and tutorial system, and a wacky off-the-wall storyline, Z.H.P. will provide entertainment and hours of replay and enjoyment.

The songs are really addictive in this game. I have the main theme song almost memorized in Japanese after hearing it so many times hehehe. At this point I think everyone at work here can sing it too because I’m always singing it.

For those interested, Nao from NIS gave me a copy over a month ago and we did a hand’s on preview of it. It’s a really great game and easily the best roguelike I’ve played since Azure Dreams. This is definitely worth purchasing on Day One.

Also, distance weapons are your friend in the first few chapters. Love your guns like you were Master Etna with a special ultra rare limited edition pudding.

Thanks for the warm welcome dood! I’m really excited to be on the NIS America team here. Together with Nao, I plan to continue to bring you updates and most-excellent news about our upcoming titles!!! Fans like you make our jobs worth it!!

I truly did feel that, but then again, this is actually my first roguelike. Coming into a crawler with only standard RPG experience under my belt, it was natural to feel that way. As a fellow gamer, I feel that we all deserve some truth once in a while hehe.

However, like I said, the fact that you can maintain the levels and stats you gain from dungeon crawling is what still motivates me to jump directly back into the same dungeon that I just died in. Even though I died, progress through dungeons and on bosses is noticeable on subsequent playthroughs. The fact that the maps, mobs, and item locations change too, help to keep things more interesting.

@12 it isn’t worse then CHESS, same board everytime millions of possible moves.

If your into shooters … well, hum, to each his own i guess. Personnally i prefer random generated dungeons the replaying the same 10 multiplayer matching with the same 20 weapons or less. (Note : i’m generalizing, i know you can buy DLC maps and stuff, to expand but imo it can get costy after 5 dlc at 5$ each on top of a 70$ game you’re kinda to 100$).

And you don’T have to worry about servers closing in 3 years making your game lose half the what you paid because you can’t use the multiplayer option anymore.

And you also don’T have to worry about annoying players who quit games, shout insults, kill their own teammates because they think the others aren’t good enough, sore loosers, etc.

And nice graphic don’T make a good game, best example would the castlevania transition from 2d to 3d, 3d is nicer but the 2d versions are still considered to be better then their conterparts by a lot of critics.

Any its your opinion and i respect it, but their is usually 2 sides to a medal.

Really excited about this one, I’ll be sure to pick it up. Quick question though, does La Pucelle Ragnarok have any chance of still making it over? I’ve been hugely disappointed that it hasn’t been localized yet, and am terrified that it might just be skipped over…

To answer your question, unfortunately, we don’t have any plans to localize La Pucelle Ragnarok. Our pipeline is pretty full at the moment with some most excellent titles that I think you will be really excited about.

I know it’s a bummer when we choose not to localize a title but I just wanted to let you know that your voice and suggestions are taken seriously by us here at NIS America. Our fans really do have some weight in some of the decisions we make!

I’m glad you are excited for Z.H.P, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!!!

ARG, my psp broke and I’m holding out on buying a new one till december when the “monster hunter portable 3rd” is released and I can import the special monster hunter PSP with the better analog stick and longer battery life. Hey Ryan, do you know if a US copy of ZHP will work on a japanese psp?

Sorry to hear about your PSP =( I am currently playing Z.H.P. on my Japanese first-gen PSP and haven’t had any problems. If you are talking about UMD’s I think it’s a fair assumption that you won’t have any problems since PSP UMD’s have been playable on both US & Japan units since it was released. PSN should also be fine as I currently have the downloaded version and it works great!

Man im still playing Cladun with its near infinite replayability. I will try to get this going as soon as i can. But its definitely a purchase for me. Thanks NIS for all your devotion to the psp which i hope you guys continue to deliver great content onto further platforms.

Hi there, i love NISA, therefore, i love this, and i know this WILL be funny, IT WILL BE MINE!!!, and im freaking freaking really excited with the release of ar tonelico 3! i will be freaking freaking waiting any news you guys give about this game! SO dont keep me waiting unless you want me to explode some prinnies around xD. Oh, and i know this is too soon, but if there is a pre-order bonus for ar tonelico 3 (or any game at all) don’t forget amazon… is the only way i import games to my country for a reasonable prize T_T had to miss out many pre-order bonus because Amazon has been ignored.

Thanks for your support!! Keep spring 2011 marked on your calendar for Ar Tonelico 3, as thats when we are scheduled for the U.S. release!!! Hopefully in the upcoming months I’ll have some more information to put in the blog for you guys. Until then, please don’t explode! hehehe.

As for the preorder bonus items that we usually promote with our game and anime titles, unfortunately they are limited to only our NIS America Online Store =(. When orders are placed through other vendors, they don’t have the ability to include such items unfortunately.

I don’t mean to name drop another company in your post but Atlus and NIS are probably the only reason I’m still into gaming these days. I’ve purchased a lot of games the past year but it’s these niche games that you guys publish that really keep me playing and excited about my hobby. THANK YOU for what your company NIS does to bring these to the states. I know here in the States we’re a secondary market and don’t get a lot of attention w/ these games because they’re not big money makers in this territory but I really cherish the ones we do get. Thank you sooo much!

If you like niche games, this one is definitely for you dood! I’m at the tip of the iceberg with Z.H.P. and I’m really excited to get into the longer dungeons. I’m still a novice at roguelikes, but this title has really turned me onto the genre.

We really appreciate the support and love being able to put games out that people appreciate! Being different is something that we pride ourselves with here at NISA, and we are really thankful when fans recognize this!!! Thanks for being such an awesome fan!

Weapons are across the board really. So far in my own experience, I’ve seen normal melee ones such as swords, lances, axes, hammers, fishing poles, etc… I’ve even seen staffs and such that have elemental abilities too. I’ve picked up a shield also in my travels.

Shooting weapons are present too, but it’s a pretty good mix of both while you’re playing. As I mentioned, the items along with the dungeon maps are randomly generated, so you may see one map more heavy on melee weapons versus shooting ones and vice versa.

oh man, i REALLY want this game, but i’m still running through Cladun. Trying to max the stats and getting the full potential of the D99 items is intense! But, I have a habit of buying NIS games, so i will pick it up anyways. :) Too many RPG’s is a good problem to have! keep up the awesome work NISA! My undying loyalty is yours.

I love rogue-likes! I will get this even tho the quirky Japanese humor doesn’t appeal to me. Shiren the Wanderer PSP doesn’t seem to be getting a US release so I will get this instead. Hopefully $20 on PSN.